Just a Dream
by RayreeAnne
Summary: Lucy Dragneel ends up in a living nightmare when an intruder breaks into her home while she is alone. Her husband, Officer Natsu Dragneel, is her only hope when she discreetly informs of the situation. Now all she can do is hold on tight until help arrives. (Hiro Mashima owns Fairy Tail.)
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

Positive. The test reads positive.

From inside the ensuite bathroom, twenty-four-year-old Lucy Dragneel is utterly thrilled. She is jumping and twirling around in her bare feet. Pregnant. She is pregnant! She is even able to think back to the session that is the cause of her being pregnant.

Grinning from ear to ear, Lucy does a little dance. All of it is a dream come true! She comes to a stop when she thinks of her husband, Natsu Dragneel. He is a police officer and the man she is happy to say is her best friend. They have known each other since middle school and are high school sweethearts.

"How am I going to tell him?" Lucy asks herself. She has never put much thought into revealing the news to him since she has not been pregnant before. She supposes she can just tell it to him straight, but she does want to have some fun with it. Maybe she can turn it into a game for him…

Of course, with whatever she ends up doing, she wants to do it in person. Unfortunately, Natsu is not at home since he is heading over to his work for a bit. Apparently he needed to drop something off for someone. At least Lucy has some time before he returns home.

"Hey, I can look things up online!" Lucy reaches for her left back pocket only to find her cell phone is not there. "Oh, right. I left it downstairs." So she leaves the bathroom and makes her way to the kitchen where her phone is on the island counter. Just as she exits the bedroom and descends the stairs, she hears the back door open up for some reason.

"Natsu?" Lucy asks, stopping towards the bottom of the stairs. She finds it odd he did not use the front door or even the door that connects the garage and kitchen. After all, he should have parked his car out in the driveway or in the garage depending on his plans for later.

However, she does not hear him say a word. Instead, she only hears the back door shut.

"Natsu?" she asks again, using a louder voice. Lucy finishes walking down the stairs and makes her way towards the family room. Just as she enters the kitchen, she freezes in place and gasps. Chills race down her spine at who she sees. Natsu is most certainly not home.

Standing on the other side of the kitchen that is adjacent to the family room is a grown man. He has tan skin, reddish brown hair, and dark eyes. He is wearing scuffed up shoes, dark jeans, and a plain grey tee.

"Hello, Lu Lu," he says warmly, looking at her with adoration.

Of course, Lucy recognizes him. Besides, the nickname for her is a dead giveaway. "Dan Straight…" she murmurs.

The two of them went to high school together. Dan had always wanted to date her, but she never wanted that since she had eyes for someone else. After she and Natsu started dating, Dan became more determined to make his dream a reality. At some point, his behavior seemed borderline obsessive. Her circle of friends considered him to be a crazy stalker when it came to her.

"It's just me," Dan says to assure her.

At least she only has him to worry about. Things can be worse if he showed up with friends or something else.

"Why are you here?" Lucy asks after she finds her voice.

"I wanted to see you, Lu Lu. I missed you."

She is not sure what to say since she never once missed him.

"You know, it took a bit for me to find you. I was looking for Lucy Heartfilia, but you changed your last name to Dragneel. Why'd you do that? It's a weird last name."

"I married–"

"M-married?" he interrupts, eyes growing wide with shock. "Oh, say it isn't so, Lu Lu! I always thought we'd end up together!"

"Life doesn't always go according to plan," she says.

"So who did you marry?" He seems nervous, as though he will not like what she has to say.

"Natsu."

A forced grin forms on his face. "Natsu? Natsu Dragneel?"

Lucy slowly nods, not liking this situation.

"He's the one… ? You chose him over me… ?"

She is unsure how to respond. She might make things worse for her if she confirms what he asked her.

Dan gives her his best puppy dog eyes. "What about the something special we have between us, Lu Lu?"

"But the last time we saw each other was graduation," she points out.

"Well, it seemed like me popping in to visit was long overdue!" Then he holds his arms out wide. "Come here and give me a hug!"

However, Lucy remains rooted in place. "Why are you really here?" she gulps.

His arms lower an inch or so. "Lu Lu, weren't you listening earlier? It's because I've missed you!"

"Then why didn't you knock on the front door and wait for me to get it? You came in through the back."

"It's because I wanted to surprise you!" Then he raises his arms higher and laughs. "How long are you going to keep me hanging now?"

"Dan," Lucy says, wanting to be firm.

"Yesss, Lu Lu?"

"I think it's time you go."

His arms drop to his side and he pouts. "But I just got here." Then Dan perks up. "And while I'm here, we should pretend we're married and this is our home! If you like it so much, we can really get married and live together! We can make up for lost time!"

She really does not want to give him any sort of false hope that he has a sliver of a chance with her. "Dan, listen to me. Really listen. I'm happy with my current life. I'm happy being married to Natsu and living here with him."

Something dark flashes in his eyes. "But what about us, Lu Lu?"

Lucy jumps in surprise at the sudden noise when her phone starts going off from the kitchen island counter. By the assigned ringtone, she knows it is Natsu. His timing is certainly impeccable! It is like his Lucy-is-in-trouble radar is going off!

On the other hand, Dan reacts to the unexpectedness of the call by drawing a gun and aiming it at the phone.

Lucy is completely on edge now, knowing she needs to be extremely wary of her future actions. "Natsu is calling me," she explains slowly. "He'll call again if I don't answer."

"Natsu is calling me," she explains slowly. "He'll call again if I don't answer."

Dan's eyes dart between from her and her still ringing phone before he finally rests on her. "But I want you to pay attention to me."

"But I have to answer my phone. It'll be rude of me to not answer."

"And it'll be rude if you ignore me," he points out.

"I'll talk with you when I finish talking on the phone. How does that sound?"

Her phone finally falls silent.

Dan jumps in surprise when her phone stops ringing and he glances at it. He is readying himself for what is about to happen.

"I can call him back–" Lucy starts.

"No!" Dan interrupts, barely lowering the aim of his gun.

"He's going to call again if I don't call him back."

"Why would he–"

Just like she said, Natsu calls again and her phone goes off.

"Answer it," Dan instructs. "No funny business. No asking for help. Tell him you were in the bathroom before."

Not making any sudden movement, Lucy slowly walks over to the island and picks up her phone, answering it. "Hey, Natsu," she says, attempting to sound natural and not seem stressed.

"Hiya, Luce."

"Sorry that I missed the first call." She goes with what Dan told her. "I was in the bathroom."

"All good. I just wanted to letcha know that I plan on hanging out with the guys tonight."

Her gut wrenches. He is about to receive horrible news. "And then we can watch TV when you're home, right?" she asks.

"Uh, I plan on being out late, but I guess–" he begins.

Lucy laughs suddenly, cutting him off unbeknownst to Dan. "Remember the episode with the one moose in the greenhouse?"

Natsu falls silent for a moment. "Moose… ?" he whispers in a monotone voice.

"Yes, the one moose in the greenhouse!" she giggles, feeling a tight ball form in her throat.

There is some more silence on his end before he speaks again. "You–"

"All right, I'll see you when you get home," she interrupts, trying not to get choked up.

"Luce, don't hang–" he starts desperately.

"I love you, Natsu," she adds sweetly.

"Lu–"

She hangs up her phone, trying not to lose her composure. She feels as though Natsu will come through for her.

During a free evening, Lucy and Natsu were watching some cop show on television. There was a case with a moose in a greenhouse, and the couple found it humorous. In fact, they found it so humorous that they made a code out of it. Although, they did make it up hoping they will never have to use it.

By saying the phrase twice, she only confirmed his fears. There is an intruder in their home. The fact she specified with one moose, he will know there is one intruder. She can only hope help arrives soon enough. She is already done with this twisted dream. She wants out of this nightmare.

 **x-X-x (POV change and is set in the past by a bit) x-X-x**

Natsu had hopes to simply enjoy the whole day with his wife, but a friend called in a favor. At least he can spend the rest of it with her when he returns home.

He parks his car in a free spot and steps out, locking it up behind him as he walks towards the station. He makes his way inside the building and passes some familiar faces here and there.

"Hey, what are you doing here, Dragneel?" a man by the name of Loke Regulus asks. "I thought you're off today."

"I am, Regulus, so don't go asking for anything. I'll leave once I save Ice Pincess' ass."

Loke merely chuckles. "Have fun with that. Tell Lucy I say hi by the way!"

Natsu continues on his way and stops in front of a certain Gray Fullbuster's desk. "Special delivery for one Ice Princess." He proceeds to drop the folded white tee onto the desk.

The pale skinned man with dark locks looks up with his dark blue eyes. "Thanks." Even though he is wearing his uniform, it clear to see he is not wearing an undershirt.

"So what happened to your other white shirts? I know you own a bunch because you always strip 'em off and lose 'em."

For whatever reason, Gray tends to mysteriously lose articles of clothing. It is like he is under some sort of curse.

One of Gray's eyes twitches. "Didn't I say no questions when I asked for the favor?"

"But the favor is over," Natsu points out.

Gray avoids eye contact when he speaks. "I was with Juvia last night and couldn't find my shirt this morning. She didn't have any I could wear. I needed to get to work and couldn't make a stop. I ran out of the spares I normally keep in my car."

A gleam appears in Natsu's eyes. "Oh, so you're in a good mood today… For certain reasons… Juvia related reasons…"

"Don't press your luck," Gray warns.

"Hey, you were the lucky one last night–" he begins to snicker.

Gray's glare becomes ice cold. "Flame Brain…" he growls.

"I'm just messing with you," Natsu says, holding his hands up in defense. "And good for you."

"Thanks, I guess."

"But…" Natsu begins.

"But?" Gray questions. "Why does there have to be a but?"

"Buuut when are you gonna ask Juvia to be your official girlfriend, huh?"

A bashful look comes across Gray's face, an unusual sight for the man. "I'm planning on it…" he mumbles. "Not today. Soon. Maybe."

"Maybe?"

"Maybe soon." Then he sighs. "I guess I'm waiting for the right time."

Natsu claps him on the back. "No time like the present!"

Gray cracks a grin. "Hey, speaking of the present, do you have plans later?"

Natsu thinks for a moment. "I think I was just gonna be with Luce."

"The guys and I plan on going out. Wanna join?"

"I'll hafta let Luce know," he replies, already taking out his cell phone.

"You're so whipped," Gray teases.

Merely shrugging in response, Natsu dials Lucy's number and holds his ringing phone up to an ear. Oddly, enough, she does not pick up. "Huh…" he says as he lowers his phone.

Gray shrugs. "Maybe she's busy."

"But she shouldn't be." Natsu tries calling again. "She's off today."

Finally, Lucy answers. "Hey, Natsu," she says.

He smiles at the sound of her voice. "Hiya, Luce."

"Sorry that I missed the first call. I was in the bathroom."

"All good. I just wanted to letcha know that I plan on hanging out with the guys tonight."

"And then we can watch TV when you're home, right?" she asks.

"Uh, I plan on being out late, but I guess–" he begins.

Lucy laughs suddenly. "Remember the episode with the one moose in the greenhouse?"

He should be confused by her seemingly random question, but because of it, his mind goes blank for a moment. "Moose… ?" he whispers in a monotone voice.

"Moose?" Gray questions with an incredulous look on his face.

"Yes, the one moose in the greenhouse!" she giggles.

One moose. Greenhouse. Natsu knows what the phrase means. It something he and Lucy have. "You–"

"All right, I'll see you when you get home," she interrupts, trying not to get choked up.

"Luce, don't hang–" he starts desperately.

"I love you, Natsu," she adds sweetly.

"Luce! Stay with me, Luce!"

However, he is met with silence on the other end. He lowers his phone to discover the call is over. "Lucy!"

"Hey, what's going on with you?" Gray asks, treading lightly on the matter. He can tell his friend is not acting like his normal self.

"She's in trouble," he breathes, staring at the black screen of his phone.

"What kind of trouble?"

"She used a phrase when we spoke. She told me there's one moose in the greenhouse."

Gray blinks in surprise. "I don't follow…"

"One moose. That means one intruder."

"And greenhouse?"

"That's home."

"So one intruder at home."

"Exactly." Then Natsu snaps himself into reality. He has to bring officers together for a home invasion and possible hostage situation that will hit close to home for many.

* * *

 _A/N Part 1: So a couple of things about this work. I got the base idea for it because I was watching a show and there was a literal moose trapped in a greenhouse. I joked with my mum about making that a phrase for something and this idea came to mind. On that note, this fic isn't gonna be my normal style of fluff and romance XD **And I have no clue how this actual situation would be handled. Just my interpretation of it.**_

 _A/N Part 2: On another note, some personal experience is involved. There have been two people involved in my life that have been obsessed with me. One more psychological than the other. Everything is fine now, but the past is still a factor. Both cases heavily affected me then, but I'm stronger now. In a way, this is helping get some things outta my system in a good way._

 _A/N Part 3: When it comes to replying to reviews, I'm gonna try something different and only reply to the reviews I can reply to with PMing. In past works, I've written replies below my notes and I've had a lotta people complain about that XD At least for this work, I'm gonna stick with replying with PMing! But I still do appreciate every single review along with followers and faves :D Y'all rock!_


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

With the phone call over, Dan now has Lucy's cell phone. He offered to be a good guy and handle all of her texts and calls for her.

Lucy decides it is time to take a gamble. Not only does she need to ensure her safety, but the safety of the growing life inside of her. She can only hope that Dan will go easy on her once he learns. "I'm pregnant," she says.

The first person she is revealing the joyous news to is not the person she planned on. In fact, she never planned on this situation.

He glances down at her stomach, a dubious expression on his face. "But you don't look like it…"

"I just found out today. The used pregnancy test confirming it is in the bathroom."

He eyes her warily. "Show me." Then he gets jittery and points the gun at her. "Keep your hands up and slowly lead the way."

She cautiously raises her arms, palms out, and begins leading the way. Her mind is racing of what she can do. There is a handgun in the bedroom, but she doubts that she can get her hands on it without Dan noticing.

Right before Lucy enters the bedroom, she debates rushing inside before Dan and locking the door behind her. However, she will not have a safe way of escaping if she does that.

"Stand by the bathroom door and keep in sight," Dan instructs.

She does as she is told and waits just outside of the bathroom.

After stepping into the room, Dan peers down at the pregnancy test that Lucy had forgotten on the counter. It is quite obvious to tell it is positive by the two stripes it has. Ever so quietly, Dan leaves the bathroom and looks at Lucy.

She takes a single step back, anticipating what he might do to her.

Then Dan lights up with a smile. "We're going to have a baby! A baby!"

Lucy supposes that she should be thankful for his positive reaction. She cannot imagine what a negative outcome might have been…

Suddenly, Dan freezes up and his eyes grow wide as he looks at something past Lucy. He gasps, taking in the photo of Natsu in his uniform. "He's a cop...?" he whispers.

"What did you say?" she asks, having only caught the last word he said.

"He's a cop?!" he demands loudly.

She shrinks back a little. "Y-yes."

"You're married to a cop?!"

Lucy nods. "Yes."

Dan shouts in exasperation and begins to the pace the bedroom. His eyes land on the handcuffs lying on top of the dresser, the very dresser that has a handgun in the top drawer. He comes to a stop, pointing at the handcuffs with his free hand while keeping his gaze on Lucy. "Put those on."

So she walks over to the dresser and picks them up. She closes the metal around one of her wrists. Lucy tightens it, but leaves it loose enough where she has a chance of slipping it off. Then she attempts to secure her other wrist, but she is having difficulty.

"Stay still." Dan makes his way over to her and helps her with the cuff. Then he tightens the other one, making sure she cannot slip out with ease. Her plan failed.

Dan steps away and smiles. "Glad that's over!"

She does not say a word to him. She silently fumes instead.

"Aw, don't give me that look, Lu Lu! We're going to have some fun now!"

"How can I do that with these"-she holds her hands up for emphasis-"on?"

"I'm sure there's lots of things we can do!" he says to keep things positive. "We can snuggle. Cuddle, too. Um, what else–" An idea pops into his head, showing in his eyes. "We can go downstairs and find something to do! Like watch a movie together. Doesn't that sound like fun?"

Not being told twice, Lucy makes her way over to the bedroom door to leave. Of course, Dan follows after her.

As Lucy walks down the stairs, her mind races. She needs to get out, but how? The handgun is back in the bedroom. Her hands might not be secured behind her, but they are not going to do her much good. Perhaps she will have a chance to land a good kick to him. Although, the front door is right there. She might have a chance to escape, but Dan will probably catch her.

As she rounds the banister to head towards the kitchen, Dan stops to lock the front door. He does the deadbolt and the lock in the handle. "There," he says with a satisfied nod, and looks back at Lucy. "Just to make sure nobody disturbs us."

Chills race down her spine.

When the duo enters the kitchen, Lucy looks around for methods of escaping.

"Hey, where are your trash bags?" Dan asks. "And tape? Preferably duct tape though."

She stiffens from head to toe as various scenarios with those two objects come to mind. "W-why do you want to know?"

He points to the little window above the kitchen sink. "I don't like seeing clouds. They make me sad. You don't have any curtains there so I can't block it out. If I tape a trash bag over it, that'll solve the problem!"

Lucy knows it was also block people from seeing inside, but she wants him to remain in the current calm state he is in. She does not want to cause any trouble for now. "The trash bags are in the cupboard above the stove. A roll of duct tape should be in the smaller drawer next to the coffee maker."

"Thanks, Lu Lu!" All while keeping her in sight, Dan gets to work gathering the items he needs. Lucy can only watch as he covers up the window.

"Hey, why don't we close the curtains, too? I don't want the whole world seeing how beautiful you are!"

Lucy gulps. "But I like seeing the sunshine."

"It's cloudy outside though," Dan says, pointing out the obvious. "So there isn't any sunshine to see." Then he smiles at her. "Although, you are my sunshine!"

She shivers.

"How about we close the curtains for now, but open them back up when it gets sunny? Does that sound good, Lu Lu?"

She finally gives in. "All right."

"Great!"

"We have to turn on lights in here so we can see though," Lucy says.

"But your beauty is more than enough to light up the whole house!"

So Lucy accompanies Dan as he closes the curtains in the family room. The living room is next, but she sees no sign of cop cars out front yet. She does not even see Natsu's car. _Where are they… ?_ she wonders.

"Hey, what should we do next?" Dan asks, closing the last curtain.

"We could go on a walk," she suggests, wanting to be exposed.

"Nah, I already did enough walking outside for today." He perks up with an idea. "Ooo, we could eat!"

"I can order pizza," she offers, wanting to calling for help instead.

He gives her his best puppy dog eyes he can muster. "But I want to try some of your cooking!"

She holds up her hands for a moment. "It might be hard with these on."

"I believe in you! You can do it, Lu Lu!"

She sighs in defeat. "Well–"

Loud noises from outside cut her off. Sirens get closer and closer.

"Wow, sounds like trouble," Dan whistles.

Her heart squeezes. She can only hope that help is arriving for her.

The sirens are even closer now. Tires screech against the road out in front of the house.

When curiosity gets the better of him, Dan barely opens one of the curtains so he can peek out with an eye. Then he gasps loudly. "Wow, there sure are a lot of them! There's even a big van!"

"This is the police!" a deep male shouts loudly from outside the house.

Lucy instantly recognizes the voice. It is Laxus Dreyar, the grandson of the chief of police and a buddy of Natsu's. Her heart nearly leaps out of her chest. Natsu did pull through for her!

"This is the police!" another male voice yells. "We are surrounding the house!"

Lucy knows Gajeel Redfox's voice anywhere. After all, he is the husband of her best friend.

Dan closes the curtain and steps back to shoot Lucy a look. "You called the cops?"

"You've been with me the entire."

"But you spoke with your husband on the phone," he comments, beginning to connect the dots.

"You heard our entire conversation," she points out, wanting to throw him off. "How could I have–"

"But you did! You did or said something and he knew!"

Lucy will not allow herself to be backed into a corner even though she is trying to dupe him. "Dan, you heard everything I said. I didn't ask for help. I didn't tell him I needed help. And there is no way Natsu could have seen me do anything since we were talking on the phone."

He clearly grows frustrated as he gets a grip on the situation. "Ugh, I don't like this!"

Lucy definitely agrees with him. She does not like what is happening at all. It is just a dream that she needs to wake up from. The sooner the better.

Inside of Dan's pocket, Lucy's phone sounds off when an unknown number begins calling her. She and Dan both jump in surprise at the sudden noise.

"Who do you want to answer it?" Lucy asks.

"We should just let it go to voicemail…" he whines, not making a move to grab her phone. "I don't feel like talking to anybody, but you."

"Why don't you put it on speaker phone?" she suggests. "That way we can do it together."

"I'll do most of the talking for you." Ever so reluctantly, he pulls the cell phone out of his pocket. He answers the call and puts it on speaker.

"This is Laxus Dreyar," he states. "I want to speak with the one who is with Lucy."

"I don't want to talk!" Dan complains.

"Is Lucy all right?" Laxus continues.

"I'm fine," she assures him.

"Shh, don't talk!" Dan scolds. "Anyways, you guys are interrupting some precious time I want to spend with my wife."

"Wife?" Laxus questions. "Do you mean Lucy?"

"Yep!" Dan replies happily. "Do you know her? Isn't she great?"

"She is great," he agrees. "But I thought that she is married to someone else. You don't sound like her husband."

"But I'm her husband! We're married!" Then he grows frustrated. "So go away! Just leave Lu Lu and me alone!" He hangs up the phone and pockets it.

Lucy feels hopeful someone will identify who Dan is because he just referred to her as Lu Lu. Levy calls her Lu, but Dan has been the only person to call her Lu Lu. She can only hope the officers will know how to handle the situation once they know who is holding her hostage.

"So how about some food?" Dan asks, acting as though everything is normal. "I'm hungry!"

"I'm pretty sure there are leftovers in the fridge."

"But I want something freshly made and warm!"

"That will take some time to cook and prepare," she reasons. "I can easily heat up some leftovers."

"Do you have pasta?"

She blinks at the randomness of food choice. "Pasta?"

"Yeah, pasta! I want some pasta!"

"I don't think there are any pasta leftovers…"

"Then make some!"

 **x-X-x (POV change and is set in the past by a bit) x-X-x**

Natsu does not like what he is seeing as his home comes into view. At least for the front, all the windows are covered up by curtains. They have no way of getting a clear look inside. He doubts the back windows and the ones on the side are uncovered either.

"Dammit!" he curses, punching the seat he is sitting on.

"This intruder sure knows what they are doing," Gray comments. "This could be some random home robbery or somehow the person is connected to you guys."

Natsu racks his brain. "I got no clue… I don't know why anybody would wanna hurt Lucy."

"What about you?"

His temper flairs. "The bastard better not be using her to get to me!"

Along with other vehicles, Gray parks his in the middle of the street. Police officers leave their vehicles and start surrounding the house.

"This is the police!" Laxus shouts loudly.

"This is the police!" Gajeel yells. "We are surrounding the house!"

Natsu makes a move to exist the police car, but Gray puts a hand to his chest. "Stay here for now."

"As if!"

"Wait for Dreyar's orders."

"Why should I?" Natsu fumes. He wants to barge into his home and protect his wife. As of now, he can only hope that she is holding up.

"We don't know, but this could be personal," Gray reasons calmly. "With you as Lucy's husband, that makes it more personal."

Natsu does agree with him even though he does not like it.

There is no sign of movement from inside. Not even a peep. So now Natsu and others are inside of the van. They need to contact someone inside and Lucy's cell phone is their best bet. Laxus punches it in and waits, hoping for someone to pick up.

When the call is answered, he starts speaking. "This is Laxus Dreyar," he states. "I want to speak with the one who is with Lucy."

"I don't want to talk!" a man's voice complains.

"Is Lucy all right?" Laxus continues.

"I'm fine," she assures him.

Natsu's heart soars and relief washes over him. However, the man's voice is annoying and reminds Natsu of the past. He cannot seem to place a face to the voice though.

"Shh, don't talk!" the man scolds. "Anyways, you guys are interrupting some precious time I want to spend with my wife."

Natsu easily becomes vexed. Who does this guy think he is? Lucy is not married to him! Not a chance!

"Wife?" Laxus questions. "Do you mean Lucy?"

"Yep!" the man replies happily. "Do you know her? Isn't she great?"

"She is great," he agrees. "But I thought that she is married to someone else. You don't sound like her husband." He avoids using Natsu's name in case it is a trigger.

"But I'm her husband! We're married!" Then the man grows frustrated. "So go away! Just leave Lu Lu and me alone!" He hangs up the phone.

Because of the nickname, things click in place for Natsu and Gray. "Dan Straight!" they say in unison.

"Who?" Laxus questions.

"The annoying guy from high school?" Gajeel grunts, the past coming to him.

"Ugh, I knew his voice was familiar," Natsu says.

Gray nods in agreement. "Calling her Lu Lu was a dead giveaway."

"What's his history with Lucy?" Laxus inquires, needing any information they can get on the guy.

"Dan always wanted to date Lucy," Natsu begins. "He still wanted to even after her and I started dating. He became creepy and obsessed with her."

"Stalker level really," Gajeel adds.

"The last time I saw him was graduation," Gray comments, thinking back to the time. "I think that's the last time we all saw him actually."

Laxus tries piecing things together. "So what's he doing back? Is he trying to get Lucy?"

Natsu forms tight fists. "He better not be…"

"How did he find out where you two live?" Gray asks.

"I have no clue," Natsu replies. "It's not like we've broadcasted where we live."

"He must have done some research," Gajeel comments.

"But at least we know who it is," Laxus mentions.

Natsu looks back at his home, anticipation rising in him. "We'll save you, Lucy."

* * *

 _A/N: Just another chapter with more drama :P At least they know who the guy is! Oh, if I haven't mentioned this before, I plan on this work being 5 chapters long!_


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

Lucy stares down at the pot of boiling water in front of her. She has yet to add any of the pasta because she is waiting for a certain moment. She only needs Dan to be closer to her for her plan to work…

"Hey, Dan?" she begins, looking over her shoulder at him to find he is sitting at the island.

"What is it, Lu Lu?" he asks.

"Do you think this water is hot enough?"

"What do you mean?"

She giggles. "Don't you want to help me cook? It's a fun thing for couples to do!"

His face lights up with a smile. "I sure do!" Then he hops off of the stool and walks over to her.

Letting adrenaline take over, Lucy grabs the pot's handle with both hands because she is still cuffed. She does her best to slosh the boiling water onto him.

He screams in pain when he splashes onto his side and makes contact with his skin. His shirt sticks to his skin, making it worse for him.

For extra measure, she takes the pot and whacks him upside the head before bolting for the front door. It is closer than the back door and she has a better shot of reaching it before she is caught.

"G-get back here!" Dan shouts.

After reaching her destination, she unlocks the deadbolt and the lock in the handle before throwing open the door. She manages to get one foot over the threshold before she is yanked back by her long hair. Seeing stars, she shouts in pain and tries tearing away Dan's hand from her hand.

His free hand with the gun wraps around her waist. "Where do you think you're going?" he asks as calmly as he can through gritted teeth.

Police officers are all in stances with their guns aimed at Dan. None of them fire because of Lucy's position.

"Drop the gun!" Loke demands.

"Leave us alone!" Dan shouts.

Lucy struggles to escape Dan's hold on her, but to no avail. He is too strong for her to handle. It does not help that she is still cuffed either. Her eyes dart around, desperately searching for any sign of Natsu.

"Drop the gun and step away from Lucy!" Laxus orders.

A shaking cop car catches her attention and she notices Natsu is inside, struggling to get away from Gray who is keeping him from leaving. Her heart squeezes. He is here!

"I want to be alone with Lu Lu! If that doesn't happen, I'll kill her! I'll kill her and the baby!" With that, Dan drags Lucy inside and shuts the door with a foot. He tosses her to the ground and gets to work on locking the door.

Lucy pushes herself off of the ground with her hands and looks up at Dan.

"I still want pasta," he says with a twisted grin. "And this time, you're going to make it for me."

She merely stares up at him, remaining in her position. She still has her fighting spirit, but it is damped due to what just happened. She failed to escape from Dan.

With a free hand, he reaches up to gingerly touch his head injury. "Oh, and I need some medicine. I have a terrible headache for some reason. I guess I'll need a new shirt, too. I can't be wet!"

 **x-X-x (POV change and is set in the past by a bit) x-X-x**

Natsu loses it when he sees Dan with Lucy. She looks terrified, but she is still trying to escape. He needs to get out and help her.

"Drop the gun!" Loke demands.

"Leave us alone!" Dan shouts.

"I know you want to help, but stay in here," Gray says. Laxus had ordered that Natsu remain in Gray's police car and that Gray accompany him.

"She needs me!" Natsu argues, reaching for the door handle.

Gray grabs a hold of him and yanks him back. "You might put her in danger if you go out there!"

Natsu tries shaking him off. "Lemme go!"

"Drop the gun and step away from Lucy!" Laxus orders.

Natsu tries his best to shake Gray off of him. "Lemme go!"

"I want to be alone with Lu Lu! If that doesn't happen, I'll kill her! I'll kill her and the baby!" With that, Dan drags Lucy inside and shuts the door with a foot.

Natsu becomes still. Baby?

The other officers are slightly thrown off as well. Before he spoke just now, they were under the assumption that Lucy is alone with the intruder.

"Is she babysitting?" Gray asks.

"She should be alone… According to Lucy, it should just be her and that bastard…" The gears turn in Natsu's mind as he thinks. Then he looks at Gajeel the same moment Gajeel looks back at him. Obviously they are thinking the same thing.

"What's going on?" Gray asks.

Natsu is already getting out his phone to call Levy to confirm the situation. "I didn't think she was supposed to babysit Emiko…"

By the second ring, Levy answers. "Hey, Natsu!" she greets warmly.

"Is Lucy babysitting Emiko at our house?" he asks quickly, getting right to the point.

"I'm at my house with her right now," she replies with confusion. "Why do you ask?"

Natsu gulps, his mouth feeling rather dry. Can he tell her what is happening to her closest friend?

"Natsu?" Levy asks after silence on his end.

"Just wondering," he manages to say. "Thanks for letting me know. Bye, Levy." After that, he hangs up.

"Well?" Gray prompts.

"Lucy isn't babysitting Emiko." Then Natsu looks at Gajeel, finding he is still staring. He is worried his baby might be in there, being a second hostage. When Natsu shakes his head, Gajeel visibly relaxes.

"So what's Dan talking about then?" Gray asks.

"I dunno–"

Natsu receives a text and he checks it, hoping it is his wife. Unfortunately, it is not.

Levy: You called Lucy by her name and not Luce. What's going on?

He tipped her off by accident. "Shit."

"What's wrong?"

"Levy. She's asking what's wrong."

"Well, you were a little off with what you said."

"It's because I called her Lucy."

Gray is silent for a moment. "Yeah, I've noticed that, too. You haven't called her Luce even once since Lucy spoke to you over the phone."

Natsu clamps his eyes closed, trying to regain his composure. He rubs his face with one hand. Being off his game will not help anything. "I'm worried."

It is an odd sight for Gray to see his partner and best friend cracking like this. "Well get her back, Natsu," he assures him. "She'll be fine. She's tough. She's Lucy."

 **x-X-x (POV change) x-X-x**

With more water in the pot to boil on the stove, Lucy is using a towel to clean up the water from the floor.

Now wearing one of Natsu's plain white shirts, Dan is keeping his distance from her. "I'm not mad at you, Lu Lu. I hope you know that. I know that what happened was just an accident."

"Accidents can happen while cooking," she mutters dryly.

"So what do you want to do after eating?"

Lucy shrugs. "I have no clue." Without another word, she stands up with the towel and starts making her way towards the laundry room. It is not far and just connected to the kitchen. The second door in the laundry room leads out to the garage, but Lucy doubts that will do her any good. The garage door is shut and it will take time to open it.

"Where are you going?" Dan asks.

Lucy stops to look back at him, noticing the gun is still on the counter. "I'm going to put this in the washer."

"But you just used it on the floor to get water."

"It's dirty. It needs cleaned."

"Oh. Okay, I guess you can do that."

Rather than starting a low load, Lucy just tosses the towel into the washer and leaves it. Stepping out of the laundry room, she looks at the windows that are covered by curtains and trash bags. The downstairs is completely blocked from sight. No one can see in or out of the first floor.

"Hey, after eating do you want to cuddle and watch some TV?" Dan asks.

"Not really," she replies honesty.

"Well, what will you want to do?"

"I'm not sure."

"At least you have time to think about it." Then he gasps with delight. "We could play a board game or something!"

"I think I'd rather read."

He frowns. "I mean, if that'll make you happy… But we can't do that together…"

"I just want things to be quiet."

"Oh, so do you want to nap then? Are you tired?"

She merely shrugs in response. When the pot starts boiling over, Lucy snaps back into reality. She walks over to the stove and turns down the heat slightly. She struggles with opening the pasta box and pouring in the dry curly noodles.

"You should rest if you're tired," Dan suggests. "It'll be good for the baby."

The baby… Lucy can only hope she is not putting any stress on the baby. She hopes that they both will make it out of this situation all right.

"So do you think our baby will be a boy or girl?" Dan asks.

She gulps at his choice of words, acting as though he is the father. "I don't know."

"I'm hoping for a girl," he says cheerfully. "I want her to be just like you! So amazing and beautiful."

"I think a boy just like his father would be amazing," she voices, thinking of Natsu.

"Nah, I'm not as amazing as you, Lu Lu," Dan chuckles, and then gasps loudly. "What about twins? What about a girl and a boy? Or maybe two boys? Oh, or many two girls? Two girls would be amazing!"

Lucy knows she will be happy no matter the outcome. She just has to survive this living nightmare first.

Her phone rings from inside of one of Dan's pockets. It is an unknown caller.

Hoping it is Laxus again, she immediately looks over at Dan. "Are you going to answer it?"

"I just don't want it to be one of those cop people," he mutters, digging around for the phone. "They're really annoying."

"I think it's the same number from before."

"So it's all right to answer since you know who it is," she assures him.

"But I don't want to talk to him again," he whines.

"Laxus might call again if you don't answer…"

With a heavy sigh, Dan answers the call and holds the phone up to his ear. He does not put it on speaker this time. "What do you want now?" He pauses and glances over at Lucy. "Yeah, she's fine. Of course, she is. Why wouldn't she be?" Another pause. "Nah, I wouldn't hurt my wife."

Lucy wishes she could overhear their entire conversation. She wants to know what Laxus is saying. Although, she at least thinks it is Laxus. It might be someone else using his phone. "Who is it?" she asks.

"That Locksissy guy," Dan replies, rolling his eyes dramatically.

"Do you mean Laxus?" she asks.

"Yeah, that guy." Then he becomes distracted with whatever Laxus is saying on the other end of the line. "What? Why? I'm just trying to spend time with the love of my life. After all, we have a lot to catch up on since we've been apart for so long."

Lucy thinks of the love of her life. He seemed so desperate to get out of the car earlier, but Gray stopped him from doing so. She still has no idea why kept Natsu from trying to reach her. She does suppose things are personal for him, but–

"Lu Lu is fine," Dan assures. "Trust me. We're just trying to relax. She's cooking me dinner right now actually. It's pasta since it's my favorite!"

Lucy hopes that Laxus catches on that they are in the kitchen. Well, at least that she is. The officers need to know their locations.

"Bye now!" Dan says abruptly, ending the phone call. He slips her phone into a back pocket one again. "Wow. He's super annoying."

"I bet," she mumbles, thinking that Dan is even more annoying than Laxus. "But there are plenty of annoying people in the world."

"Natsu was pretty annoying back in high school," he reminiscences. "And loud."

A small smile tugs at her lips. "He's still loud."

"Ugh, that's horrible."

"It keeps me on my toes. He's especially loud when he's excited…" She recalls how excited he had been when she accepted her proposal. He knew she was going to say yes, but he was still so nervous about officially asking her to be his wife.

"But at least he's out of the picture now," Dan says.

Lucy wants to correct how wrong he is, but she keeps her mouth shut.

"Because now you have me!" he continues.

"Now I have you…" she agrees in dismay.

 **x-X-x (POV change and is set in the past by a bit) x-X-x**

Some officers are back inside the van while Laxus made another phone call.

"Bye now!" Dan says abruptly, ending the call.

"Pasta?" Gajeel questions.

"They're probably in the kitchen if she's cooking," Laxus points out, hoping they have a lead. The Dragneels do not own the largest house, but it helps knowing where the two are located.

"Or at least Lucy is," Natsu adds. "But I doubt he'd leave her alone..."

"She's cuffed though," Gray mentions. "She can't cause too much trouble for him at that rate."

Loke looks at Natsu. "Do you think Dan brought his own cuffs or are they yours?"

He rubs the back of his head while he thinks. "I know I left a pair on the dresser–" Natsu cuts himself off when he pictures Dan and Lucy in their bedroom. "What was that bastard doing in my bedroom with her?!" he roars.

Gray places a hand on one of Natsu's shoulders to ground him. "Calm down. You can't get worked up."

"Lucy needs you to be level headed," Loke reminds him.

Natsu takes a deep calming breath before letting it out. He runs both hands through his pink locks, mussing it up. "Calm. Be calm. I can do that. I can do that for Lucy." He inhales deeply and exhales out loudly. "For Lucy."

"By the way, has anyone figured out the baby part?" Loke brings up.

"Lucy isn't babysitting Emiko," Gajeel says. "So it's not her."

"Dan thinks, well, he at least says he's married to Lucy," Gray begins. "Maybe he thinks she's pregnant and they're going to have a family. It's a distorted way of thinking really."

Natsu's stomach churns at the very thought of that being a possibility. On the day of their wedding, he vowed to Lucy that she would be stuck with him for life. He still plans on keeping that promise to her.

There is a knock on the open the door to the van. "I have some background info on Dan Straight," Erza Scarlet says.

All eyes turn to look at her. "What do you have?" Laxus asks.

She steps inside and hands the papers she has to him. "Dan Straight has some psychological and delusional issues. He is obviously still obsessed with Lucy."

"Tell us something we don't know," Gajeel grumbles.

"Straight has murdered once before," she continues without missing a beat. "If you look at the third sheet, you will see a similarity between the person he murdered and Lucy…"

Setting the papers down on the table, Laxus flips the pages.

Everyone stares in silence as they look at the square photo.

Natsu's blood runs cold. The young woman pictured shares an uncanny resemblance to Lucy. The major difference between them is that she is a brunette while Lucy is a blonde.

Erza goes into a brief history about her. "Her name was Ashley. Twenty-four. She and Straight dated close to six months prior to him murdering her. He shot her to death."

"He probably dated her because she looks like Lucy…" Loke comments grimly. "He wanted something he couldn't have so he went with the next best thing…"

"And he shot the poor girl," Gajeel adds.

"Straight did time for his crime," Erza says. "He was released a week ago yesterday."

Natsu finally tears his gaze away from the photo. "A week?"

"That was probably enough time for him to track down Lucy," Gray comments.

"So what's his next move with her," Laxus muses.

Natsu's mind is spinning. What if Dan decides to take Lucy's life under the if-he-cannot-have-her-then-no-can bit? He forms tight fits, swearing to himself that he will find a way to save his wife. Even if it is the last thing he does, he will keep his promise to Lucy.

* * *

 _A/N: I know there's a thing where Levy has twins, but I needed just one baby in this case. I went with Emiko since it means "smiling child" and I liked it for a Gajevy offspring XD When it comes to Ashley, I took the girl Dan had in his flash back (from the anime). And the name comes from Edo!Lucy's last name._

* * *

 ** _**EXCITING NEWS BELOW**_**

So **pucksabrinadaphne** from FFnet informed me that **Cute As Fuck** has been nominated for **The Favorite Fairy Tail Fanfiction 2016**! It's already made it to the _Primary Round_! It would mean a lot to me for you guys to go and vote for me if you enjoy CAF :D

If y'all go to their page, you can find the information there under _The Favorite Fairy Tail Fanfiction 2016_ story! On their fourth page, you can see all of the stories you're able to vote for! You're allowed to vote up to 4 stories, and I'd love to have one of those votes if you do decide to do up to 4! Oh, and I suggest **PMing** **pucksabrinadaphne** on **FFnet** to place your vote! (voting will end August 9)

Thanks in advance :D

~RayreeAnne


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

While Dan is scarfing down his meal, Lucy has yet to take a single bite of the food in front of her. She is not hungry in the slightest. She has no trace of an appetite.

"This is so great, Lu Lu!" Dan praises.

She refuses to acknowledge him. After all, he has complimented her cooking skills five times already.

Dan points his fork at her untouched plate. "Hey, aren't you going to eat, too?"

Because she is still cuffed, Lucy has to move both hands in unison to grab her fork with her dominant hand. She merely pushes around the pasta, not taking a taste of it. "I'm not hungry."

"But a pregnant woman needs to eat!"

"Maybe later…"

Suddenly, Lucy's cell phone starts going off to a ringtone unlike the other two. She immediately knows it is Levy.

Dan looks at the phone that is next to the gun on the table. "Ugh, who it is now?" he groans.

"My best friend," Lucy explains, leaving out her name. "Can I talk to her?"

Dan debates for a moment. "Only if it's on speaker."

"Okay," she agrees, dropping her fork.

So Dan grabs the phone and hands it to her.

To the best of her ability, Lucy sets the phone onto the table and answers the call. She makes sure to put it on speaker. "Hey," she says calmly.

"Lu, what's going on?" Levy asks with worry. "Natsu was stranger than normal earlier. He called me to ask a question and called you Lucy and not Luce. I can't reach Gajeel at all. None of their buddies won't answer either!"

"Gajeel… ?" Dan mutters under his breath, wondering why the name sounds familiar.

"Wait, why did Natsu call you?" Lucy asks, focusing on that.

"He asked if you were babysitting Emiko."

Lucy tries to think of why he would do that. He should have known she would not be. After all, it was supposed to be their day together.

"When I told him he, he got quiet and didn't say much else before he hung up. So what is going on?"

Lucy glances at Dan for a moment, finding he is occupied with eating. "I'm, um, eating in the kitchen," she replies lamely. "With someone."

"Someone? Who is this someone?"

"Someone from high school."

"Wow, that's so specific," Levy says sarcastically.

"I bet Gajeel would know who I mean," Lucy says. Although, she can only hope her friends from high school recognized Dan when they were briefly outside.

"High school…" Things click in place for Dan. "Gajeel as in Gajeel Redfox from high school?"

Lucy inhales sharply. She purposely avoided using Levy's name, but she just messed up because of her little slip.

"Lu, who was that?" Levy asks.

"She's married to Gajeel?" Dan asks.

"She is," Lucy replies, not denying the truth.

"Hang up."

Lucy is caught off guard. "Why?"

"He's friends with Natsu," he reasons simply. "I don't like Natsu."

"What's happening?" Levy asks, sounding desperate. "Lu, are you all right?"

Dan is quick to reach over the table, snatching the phone and ending the call. Then he pockets it. "No more talking on the phone for you. Well, at least for today."

Lucy dreads spending another day with him let alone even more hours.

 **x-X-x (POV change) x-X-x**

Gajeel just happens to be checking the time on his cell phone when he is receiving a call from Levy. "Shit."

Laxus waves a hand through the air. "Go ahead and answer."

So Gajeel takes the call and raises his phone up to his ear. "Shrimp, I–" He quickly holds the phone away from him, Levy's voice erupting from it.

"What is going on with Lu, huh?" she demands. "I need answers now! She's apparently with someone from high school, but something seems totally off! I'm not buying it!"

Natsu holds out a hand for the phone.

Gajeel gladly hands it to him, not wanting to face the wrath of his wife.

"Levy," Natsu says.

"Natsu, what is happening?" Levy seems slightly calmer now. "What's with Lu?"

He gulps. "Lucy… is in trouble. Dan Straight found out where we live."

"Dan Straight? As in Dan Straight from high school?"

"Yeah. Him."

"Why would he be with her? We haven't seen him since high school…"

"He broke into our home. She's trapped inside with him."

Levy's end of the phone is silent for a moment. "What… ?" she whispers.

Natsu swallows hard. "The bastard's holding her hostage."

Gray puts a hand on Natsu's shoulder. "We'll get her back," he assures him, wanting to be strong for his friend who can break at any given second.

"If it helps, I spoke with her a little bit ago," Levy says when she finds her voice.

Natsu is immediately interested. "Hold on." He puts the phone on speaker so the others can hear. "What did she say? I need to know exactly what was said."

"I tried asking her what was going. I mentioned that you were off when you called me, and I couldn't get a hold of anyone. She asked why you called me and I said that you asked about Emiko. We both don't know why you asked about her. Then she mentioned she was eating with someone in the kitchen. Wait, kitchen? Yes, she definitely said kitchen. Anyways, she only said it was someone from high school, no name. Then I hear another voice, I'm guessing it was Dan, asking about Gajeel because we said his name. Dan told her to hang up because he didn't like Gajeel since Gajeel was friends with Natsu back in high school. Then the call ended."

No one speaks as think about what Levy just said.

"I-I don't know if that will be much help."

"It's helpful, Shrimp," Gajeel assures her. "She mentioned they were in the kitchen. That gives us a confirmation on location."

"Unless they've moved since," Loke points out, just to voice a possibility.

"Natsu, why did you ask about Emiko earlier?" Levy asks.

"Dan's probably being delusion," Natsu begins. "From the contact we've had with him, he keeps saying that Lucy is his wife. We're guessing that he's imaging she's pregnant."

"But what about Emiko? I still don't understand why she'd be involved."

"He mentioned something about a baby, and we thought maybe Lucy had been babysitting."

"I guess that does make sense…"

"Since we learned that Emiko is safe, we're all thinking he's just thinking Lucy is pregnant."

"But now Lu's safety is priority. Is there anything I can do to help?"

Gajeel cracks a small grin because of his wife's willingness to help out.

"Let us handle this for now," Laxus says. "If you're able to contact Lucy however possible, let us know."

"Oh, I'll make sure to keep you guys in the loop. Just get Lu out of there safe and sound."

 **x-X-x (POV change) x-X-x**

Back inside, Lucy is devising a plan so she can escape. She is fully aware that Dan still has her cell phone and the gun is within reaching distance. Since they are still in the kitchen, the front door is her best means of making it outside. If she positions herself in front of the hallway that leads to it, she will have a direct path. However, she needs to ensure that she will have a head start so Dan cannot catch her.

Lucy moves about as though everything is normal even though the gears in her mind are cranking. Pieces are coming together. She walks away from the sink and makes her way over to the cupboard that is next to the refrigerator. She opens it, grabs a plastic cup, and steps over to the refrigerator. Awkwardly using both hands, she presses the cup against the water dispenser and begins to fill it.

"The food was great!" Dan says as he pats his full stomach.

"Good to hear," she mumbles.

As Lucy moves the half filled cup away from the water dispenser, it knocks into the refrigerator. She drops it and can only watch as it falls to the ground. The water sloshes onto the floor and the cup rolls around.

"Are you okay?" Dan asks with worry, believing something is wrong.

She looks over at him, hoping he does what she is about to ask him. "Can you be a dear and pick it up for me?"

"Sure thing, Lu Lu!" While standing up, Dan grabs the gun and takes it with him.

At the right moment, Lucy turns her hip and pushes out her left leg, hitting her target with the heel of her foot. She lands the kick right on his knee in hopes to immobilize him. Then she takes off for the front door.

Once more, she has to undo the two locks before she can even open the door. She does it as fast as she can.

"G-get back here!" Dan shouts, limping towards her.

Lucy jumps when the gun fires and the bullet hits the door, just missing her. She finally undoes the last lock and grabs the handle to open the door. She makes it onto the porch, noticing all offices have their guns drawn. They cannot get a clear shot without the risk of hurting Lucy.

She makes eye contact with Natsu. He is standing by a van with Gray behind him, holding him back and keeping him at bay.

Before Lucy can make it off of the porch, Dan lunges for her and wraps an arm around her waist, pulling her back. Then he moves his arm to hold her in a headlock. He uses Lucy as a human shield as he keeps a gun to the side of her head. "Don't shoot!" he warns. "I'll kill her! I'll kill her if I don't like something happening! I swear it!"

Lucy keeps her eyes locked with Natsu's. She is somewhat relieved to see him, but she is still scared for her life and the life of her unborn child. She knows she is not out of the woods yet.

Natsu is struggling against Gray's hold on him. He has to reach Lucy. He has to protect her. He has to save her.

"Calm down, Natsu!" Gray hisses under his breath.

"Nobody wants any trouble," Laxus begins, taking charge of the situation. "Just put the gun down and release her. We can finally end this."

Dan looks around frantically and his grip around her neck tightens. "D-don't come any closer!"

Lucy makes a choking sound because of the added pressure and clings onto him even more. He is hurting her.

"Release Lucy," Laxus says. "Don't you think she has been through enough? Don't you think she deserves a break?"

"She started it!" Dan argues. "She somehow let her cop of a husband know what was happening!"

Perhaps at other time, Natsu will feel proud of what Lucy did. But for now, he can only focus on her safety.

"She was scared then and is scared now," Laxus continues.

"I-I'm scared, too!" Dan admits. "I don't want to die!"

"Then why don't we talk things over?" Laxus asks. "That doesn't sound bad, right? Just let Lucy go and we'll talk."

"You're lying!" Dan suddenly bursts.

"We can talk about anything you want," Laxus assures him. "Anything. You just have to let Lucy go. Then we can talk as much as you want."

Dan's hold on her loosens, but he still remains firm. He is wavering as he thinks things over.

"P-please," Lucy adds softly as she fights back tears. "Please let me go."

Dan reacts to the sudden arrival of more officers in their cars. His body jerks in place. "Don't move!" he warns, taking a step back and moving Lucy with him.

The arriving officers park their cars and step out.

"I said don't move!" Dan pulls the trigger and fires. The single loud sound resonates through the air.

"LUCY!" Natsu shouts with desperation, his body coming to a still.

Her body crumples to the cement porch and remains motionless.

Time seems to slow down for Natsu. He feels like he is dreaming. He must be. How can a world exist where someone took his most precious thing away from him?

The officers open fire at their target. Dan goes down, the gun slipping from his fingers.

Natsu finally breaks free of Gray's loose grip and runs for his wife. He is barely holding onto a thread of hope. "LUCY! _LUCY_!"

Some other officers move in to check on Dan who is not moving.

Natsu reaches her and bends down on both knees. "Lucy!" He holds her on his lap, cradling her. He does not care crimson is staining his clothes. Natsu's vision blurs because of the many tears threatening to fall. "Lucy…" he mumbles, the knot in his throat being incredibly tight.

She does not respond to him. She does not open her eyes and smiles up at me. She remains utterly still.

"Lucy…" His tears drip onto her face, and she does not flinch in reaction to the feeling. " _Lucy_ …"

 **x-X-x**

His wife-her lifeless body-has since been removed from the scene. Now Natsu is in a mindless daze as he manages to walk through his house that feels empty. It no longer feels like home.

Not a single officer is speaking to Natsu. They even avoid looking at him. It is like he is a ghost because no one is paying attention to him.

Natsu makes his way over to the master bedroom. He looks around at all of the photos of his wife. His heart wrenches and his stomach twists. As he passes the bathroom door, he notices something odd on the counter. His eyes grow wide as he numbly approaches, his feet dragging against the floor. He gingerly picks up the positive pregnancy test and cradles it with both hands.

In an instant, he loses himself and starts wailing. It sounds throughout the quiet house.

* * *

 _A/N: So my hands slipped… All over the keyboard… Whoops… Next chapter is the last chapter at least! :D_


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

With heavy lids, Lucy slowly opens her eyes. She feels disoriented as she gathers her bearings, and her body feels weighted down. Taking in her surroundings, she discovers that she is in a hospital room. The air is sterile, and beeping is coming from a nearby machine.

Familiar voices catch her attention and she slowly moves her head over to her left. Natsu and Gray are sitting next to each other on the cushioned bench under the window. The duo looks haggard, but relieved all at the same time. They are keeping their voices low as to not disturb Lucy. Although, she is no longer slumbering.

"N-Natsu?" she murmurs, finding her voice.

He almost gives himself whiplash from moving his head too quickly. He makes eye contact with her and relief washes over him. "Luce!" In the blink of an eye, Natsu rushes over to her side and holds onto her left hand with both of his. "I'm glad you're awake, sleepy head."

Lucy's mind is trying to process what happened. "I'm alive?"

His expression softens as he nods. "Definitely."

"I'm not dreaming?"

He gently squeezes her hand. "It's real."

Since the married couple has had their little reunion, Gray makes his way over and stands at the foot of the bed. He views Lucy as a sister and wants to see her awake as well. "You're in the clear."

"Am I?" Lucy asks.

Natsu slightly tilts his head to one side. "You don't remember… ?"

"Remember what?"

"Do you remember what happened with Dan?" Gray asks.

She is completely drawing a blank so she shakes her head.

The guys exchange a glance.

"When I was asleep, I had a dream where"-she gulps-"he shot me." Obviously, that moment had not been real.

Natsu's face ashens at the very idea of that being a reality. Gray seems disturbed by the idea of that being the real outcome.

Lucy recalls what happened towards the end of her dream. "You guys took him down after that. While"-she decides against using the term body-"I was being zipped up, you both and the team went into the house. Natsu went into our bathroom and–" She cuts herself off. Does he know what she left in that room?

"What?" Natsu asks after a moment. "What's wrong? Don't remember what happened next?"

Lucy ends up shaking her head. "I guess not…"

"Hey, why don't you ask for water for Lucy?" Gray suggests. "I think she'll like that."

Natsu is eager to keep his wife comfortable. "I'll be back," he says, gingerly smooching her head. "So sit tight."

"All right," she says.

Natsu waves goodbye before he leaves the room and disappears from sight.

"So I'm going to get you in the loop of something certain," Gray says, speaking softly so he is not overheard. "Flame Brain doesn't know about the pregnancy test."

Her eyes grow wide with surprise. " _You_ know?"

Gray looks somewhat smug with himself. "Flame Brain was with you the entire time while me and some others searched your home. I was the one who stumbled across the pregnancy test. I called the hospital before you arrived and told them about your condition. I made it clear that they didn't mention a word to Flame Brain or anyone else that didn't need to know."

"That was quick thinking on your part. Good thing even."

"I figured you wanted to be the one to break the ice to him." Then he grins at her. "Congratulations by the way."

She softly smiles. "Thank you."

"I just hope the kid takes after you," Gray chuckles. "Could be horrible if anything like Flame Brain."

Lucy bears a striking resemblance to her mother, and she hopes her child will look more like Natsu than herself. Although, she can do without some of traits. Especially his loud and always itching for a fight traits. "Maybe it won't be all that bad…" she muses.

"I'm baaack!" Natsu announces as he carries a pitcher and cups. He easily pours her a glass and hands it over to her. "There you go."

"Thank you." Her first sip is quite refreshing, but she takes it easy. She rests the cup on her lap and stares at it. Only now does she notice her wrists are bruised from the handcuffs she had on. The hospital band on her right wrist sort of helps hide the fact for at least one set of the bruises. "Hey…" she says slowly. "What did really happen?"

Natsu and Gray exchange glances. "Are you sure you want to know?" Gray asks.

She looks up and nods.

Taking a small moment, Natsu sets down the pitcher and extra cups. "What do you remember up to?" he inquires.

"I'm not sure what's real or not," she admits. "I guess some parts of my dream were real, but obviously not everything was."

"You escaped from Dan a second time and he had you on the front porch," Gray begins. "You were still cuffed and he had you in a headlock."

"He had the gun aimed at your head, but he moved it away to… to his," Natsu continues solemnly. "Then he pulled the trigger."

Lucy's stomach drops and churns. She shivers a little. Perhaps she should be grateful she does not recall that moment.

"It all happened so fast," Gray adds.

"But you're okay," Natsu points out, trying to keep things positive. "You're okay."

He is right. She is okay. The baby will be okay as well. Well, at least she is under that assumption. Gray never did mention anything negative about the baby. Although, she supposes it is probably way too soon to tell anything.

"You're okay," Natsu says for a third time. Now it is like he is assuring himself that she really is.

She looks at him with a small smile. "I'm okay."

Natsu's eyes glass over and he sniffles back tears. He does not want to cry. "You're okay…"

Keeping a hold of her cup with her left hand, Lucy reaches for him with her free hand. She gives his left hand a firm squeeze. "I'm really okay."

Natsu finally has his break down moment. He is a blubbering mess full of relief and happiness. "I was s-so worried about you!" he wails, going in to hug her.

Gray is quick to grab the cup from Lucy so it does not spill on her.

Natsu holds her tightly, clamping his eyes shut. He buries his face in the crook of her neck and inhales her scent, reassuring himself that she is real and still alive. His heart squeezes tightly. "Y-you're okay. You're safe. You're _alive_."

Lucy gets misty eyed herself. "Everything worked out in the end all because of you."

Gray blinks back tears as he moves to set the cup down on a nearby table. Then he leaves the room without a word, closing the door softly behind him.

"I n-never wanna hear you say there's another m-moose in the greenhouse," he sobs. "I don't wanna go th-through that again." He shudders. "I dunno if I can…"

"I hope that I never have to say that either," she admits wholeheartedly. "Although, that phrase let you know that I was in trouble. It saved my life."

Natsu shakily pulls his head back to look at her. "I love you. I love you so much."

She rubs her nose against his for an eskimo kiss. "I love you, too."

He gets lost in her beautiful brown eyes for a moment before his lips seek hers. The last time he kissed her was right before he left to go to the station. At one point, he did fear that could have been their last kiss ever. The moment seems so long ago now. So far back in the past.

Making it last, Natsu kisses her long and deep. Lucy completely melts into the kiss. She is more than positive her knees would be buckling if she happened to be standing. His right hand moves to cup her left cheek, his thumb gingerly brushing against her smooth skin. She slightly tilts her head to make the kiss better.

Natsu is the first to pull back so he can breathe. Then he gently presses his forehead against hers. "I love you," he whispers.

"I love you, too," she breathes.

 **x-X-x**

It is late and the major source of light in the room is coming from underneath the hospital bed. The door to the room is closed and some light is shining through the crack at the bottom. The married duo is making due with sharing the hospital bed together. It is somewhat of a tight fit as they face each other, Lucy tucked under Natsu's chin. She will be released tomorrow, and he has refused to go home without his wife.

"I can't wait for you to get outta here," Natsu says, his chest rumbling as he speaks.

"Is that so?" she teases.

He smooches the top of her head. "Very much so." He gives her a gentle squeeze. "And I love you very much so."

"So much, huh?"

"So much that… I don't wanna waste any time with you. I wanna make the most of everything with you. You're my best friend and wife."

He is getting her right in the feels with his sweet words. She is getting somewhat misty eyed. "Natsu…" she murmurs.

"Family. I want to add to our family. And I'm not talking about adopting a cat. Although, maybe we can do that… Gah, I'm getting off track now. I know we've tried in the past with the results we didn't want, but let's keep trying."

"What if we don't have to try… ?" Lucy hints.

"I mean, adoption is a thing I s'pose."

She giggles.

"What's so funny?" Natsu asks, feeling as though he is not understanding something.

Lucy moves her head back to look at him, able to make out his features. She has decided it is time to get him in the loop. She is ready to see his reaction to the news. "I'm pregnant," she whispers.

Natsu stops breathing. Her words echo through his mind. "Wh-what… ?" he breathes when he finally finds his voice.

"I'm pregnant," she affirms.

He is taking everything in when something finally clicks. "The baby…"

"The baby is fine." Well, at least she believes that is the case.

"That's not what I meant. I mean, that's great and all, but _the baby_. Is that what he was referring to earlier?" Natsu avoids using Dan's name, just in case it triggers something in his wife. "By killing you, he'd kill the baby, too. Two birds, one stone."

"I told him because I thought that he might go easy on me," Lucy admits. "I didn't want to get hurt in case that endangered the baby."

"That was smart thinking on your part."

"Wait, what did you think he meant when he said it?" She starts remembering what Levy told her when they spoke on the phone. She wonders if there is a connection.

"Lug Nuts and I thought he was talking about Emiko. Like, Levy had dropped her off at the house sometime after I had left or something. So I called Levy to confirm and found out it wasn't the case. Then we all reasoned he was being delusional and thinking you were pregnant with his baby. After all, he was saying you were his wife. But he meant _our_ baby…"

Lucy bites her lower lip. "I'm sorry you weren't the first person I told…"

"No, no," he coos gently, cupping her left cheek with his right hand. "Don't be sorry. You did it to protect yourself and the baby. Like I said, smart thinking on your part."

She raises her left hand to put it over his hand.

"Wait, when did you find out?" Natsu asks, feeling giddy about the topic.

"I took a test after you left for the station," she explains. "I was going off of a feeling, and wanted to know before you got home."

"That musta been a great feeling," he muses.

"And plenty more to come from being pregnant."

"I'll be there to hold back your hair," he jokes.

"Ugh, don't remind me."

"But it'll be worth it."

"I'm going to be the one doing all of the heavy lifting," she points out.

"And I'll be there to pamper you along the way. Taking those two in the morning trips to get something for your cravings. Being your personal, good-looking massager whenever you need one."

"Not to mention the mood swings."

"I'm sure I'll be able to handle whatever you throw at me. And if you do throw something at me, I'll just dodge or catch it."

"Don't go pushing my buttons or I just might," she teases.

Natsu gasps in delight, overwhelmed with emotions. "A baby! We're gonna have a baby!"

She smiles at his reaction. "I'm excited."

"Names! We're gonna hafta think of names!" He lowers his voice a little, realizing he is getting loud. "Oh, what are you hoping for?"

Lucy thinks for a moment. "Hmm, maybe a boy to start with. That doesn't seem too bad. A boy like you, but not as loud."

"Oh, if he takes after me, we're so screwed. We'll have our hands full with a mini me."

She laughs. "I'm sure we'll be able to handle."

"You're right. We're a good team after all."

"A great team," she corrects.

"Just the bestest team around!" His tone softens. "And we're gonna be great parents."

"Oh, you can count on that."

Something comes to Natsu's mind. "Oh, Happy!"

"I'm happy, too."

"No, Happy. For a name."

One of Lucy's eyes twitches. "We're not naming any of our kids that…"

"But I like that name."

"Maybe we can name that cat you were talking about Happy," she suggests.

"Oo, I'd like that!" Then Natsu snuggles up to Lucy. "By the way, you do make me happy, Luce. You make me really happy."

"You make me really happy, too."

"I think it's time we go to bed," he says before yawning.

Only now does she notice how drowsy she is. "That sounds like a good idea."

"We have tomorrow to look forward to at least."

"More like the rest of our lives."

Natsu smiles and smooches the top of her head yet again. "That, too."

 **x-X-x**

Ten months later, it is a rainy June day outside, and Lucy is driving home. She had been hanging out with Levy and Juvia, but she is more than eager to return home to her family. She smiles when her house comes into view, knowing who is inside.

She pulls into the garage, parks her car, and shuts off the engine. She pushes a button to close the garage door before she grabs her purse and shopping bags from the passenger seat. Lucy gets out of her car and makes her way over to the door. She slowly opens it, just in case Natsu is inside the laundry room since she does not want to hit him.

Much to her surprise, Lucy discovers that the house is pretty much silent except for the rain hitting against it. "Natsu?" she calls out, shutting the door behind her with a foot.

There is no answer in reply.

She steps out of the laundry room and into the kitchen, looking around. She spots a familiar head of pink hair in the family room and makes her way over.

Lucy's heart melts at the sight before her.

Snoring softly, Natsu is reclined back on his favorite chair. Two bundles of joy, one furrier than the other, are asleep on his chest and tucked under his strong arms.

Precious and adorable Luna Joy Dragneel is on her left side, her head above his heart. Even now it looks like she does not have much hair because of her blonde locks. Her eyes are still blue and have yet to change into their real color.

Taking up the other half of Natsu is Happy the cat who is only a couple of years old. He is best friends with Luna and does not like being separated from her. He is like her own furry guardian.

Happiness swells inside of her. "I love you." Lucy bends down to kiss all of them on their heads. "All of you."

* * *

 _A/N Part 1: Pfft, as if I could write a sad ending for NaLu work… Although, it was fun to write something that wasn't fluff or romance related (excluded this chapter)! I hope y'all liked it! Thanks for reading :D_

 _A/N Part 2: Little eater eggs I had… Joy is a synonym for happy. Natsu totally gave Luna her middle name. In a way, he kinda sorta got away with naming a kid Happy XD And I chose Luna over Nashi just because I liked the ring of better with Joy. But Luna is_ _Lu_ _cy and_ _Na_ _tsu together so it still works! The title Just a Dream stems from the fact what y'all thought happened (Lucy dying and all) was_ _JUST A DREAM_ _! :D Although, I did try mentioning dream/nightmare in the earlier chapters. Cruel and clever I think XD So good job to those who figured that out!_

 _A/N Part 3: Once last time for this work, if y'all could PM_ _ **pucksabrinadaphne**_ _on_ _ **FFnet**_ _to place your vote for_ _ **Cute as Fuck**_ _as_ _ **The Favorite Fairy Tail Fanfiction 2016**_ _story, that would be wonderful :D And a huge thank to those of you who already have :D CAF is in Primary Round, but I'm curious to see how far it can go!_


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